This diverse segment offers the widest price range and obviously our Best Buys are somewhere in between. We think that the Acura RL is a steal at $44,000 fully equipped. Though it is a front-drive V6 in a field of V8 rear-drive models, it has a great ride, plenty of power, and is quite luxurious. The refined Lexus LS 430 can't be beat for comfort and features at just under $55,000. Mercedes-Benz E-Class, though a bit long in the tooth, also continues to impress with its impeccable road manners and luxurious comfort.

If you are looking for something a bit more sporting, we Recommend the BMW 5-Series. If your taste ranges more toward the luxury end, then take a look at the roomy Cadillac DeVille or Lexus GS 300.

After almost matching the entry-level A4s in calendar 2000 sales, the A6 line dropped 13.5 percent in 2001 and was off 11.8 percent year-to-year in the first half of '02. As with some other near-luxury cars these days, A6 sales are doubtless affected by Wall Street spasms, which have left many would-be buyers feeling poorer on paper if not in fact.

Even so, Audi plows ahead with a new high-performance A6 model, the RS6 sedan. It arrives next May with a twin-turbocharged and intercooled 4.2-liter V8 producing no less than 450 hp. Developed by Audi's in-house quattro performance division, the AWD RS6 is claimed to do 0-60 mph in just 4.6 sec. Top speed is electronically governed to 155 mph. Besides ESP traction/antiskidcontrol and larger ABS brakes, the RS6 introduces Audi's Dynamic Ride Control in which auto-adjusting shock absorbers are connected diagonally--left front to right rear, right front to left rear--so as to reduce body lean and pitch in hard cornering. Other features include 5-speed automatic transmission with manual-shift "paddle" controls on the steering wheel, plus unique 9-spoke 18-inch wheels, 255/40ZR performance tires, new lower fascias at each end, decklid spoiler, specific interior trim, tire-pressure monitor, Xenon headlamps, front/rear obstacle detection, plus most features of the regular A6 4.2 model. Options are few: navigation system, OnStar communications, rear side airbags, and carbon-fiber cabin accents. Price has yet to be announced, but an $81,000 base is being whispered. That alone would insure exclusivity, but sales will be limited to a maximum of only 850 through December '03--period. The RS6 then goes away, kept out of the U.S. by several arcane regulations. But if you miss out, don't be too upset. According to one executive recently quoted in AutoWeek magazine, the RS6 is not the last super-performance Audi destined for these shores.

Other models should see no major change until the A6's next complete overhaul, now forecast for 2004-05. No word yet on what will be involved.